The data in the table below was derived by timing how long it took the Nikon D50 to write out
9 JPEG Fine and
4 compressed RAW .NEF photos to the Secure Digital (SD) card. Timing commenced when the camera's card status light illuminated, and stopped when the light went out. Each test cycle was performed 3 times (if the card's capacity allowed for that) to ensure accurate results. All cards were first secure erased, then formatted in the camera, prior to testing. The same test scene was photographed, under the same illumination, for all tests. The identical camera settings and lens were also used for all tests.

The results are arranged in the table from fastest to slowest (based on RAW write speed). The top 10% (based on RAW write speed) are marked in blue.

Card (identifier)1

Source of key component(s)2

Write speed - JPEG Fine3

Write speed -
RAW .NEF3

SanDisk Extreme III 2GB(Rear label: BE0607603021BS)

SanDisk

3.355MB/sec

3.465MB/sec

Lexar Pro Series 60X 1GB(Rear label: SD1GB-60-100M 1405273 A041018B)

unknown

3.569MB/sec

3.446MB/sec

Lexar Platinum 40X 1GB(Rear label: SD1GB-100M 1405201 A041018B)

unknown

3.549MB/sec

3.423MB/sec

SanDisk Extreme III 1GB
(Rear label: BB0411XM)

SanDisk

3.344MB/sec

3.401MB/sec

ATP 2GB(Rear label: AF2GSD ASD0502001 8931M2S E0508CA)

unknown

3.418MB/sec

3.397MB/sec

Corsair 133X 2GB(Rear label: S52GBA0531KKST7TWN)

Skymedi

3.246MB/sec

3.385MB/sec

Lexar Pro Series 133X 2GB(Rear label: 3408-2GBS A5005B)

unknown

3.478MB/sec

3.381MB/sec

Transcend 80X 1GB(Rear label: 115309 1617 6450 AB 1G 0518)

unknown

3.557MB/sec

3.377MB/sec

Delkin 512MB
(Rear label: SDX512S4D4-DAAA000 )

unknown

3.362MB/sec

3.359MB/sec

Ridata Pro 150X 2GB(Rear label: U51007997391)

unknown

3.229MB/sec

3.357MB/sec

ATP Pro Max 150X 2GB
(Rear label: AF2GSDP ASD0511011 8931M6S E0547B)

unknown

3.460MB/sec

3.322MB/sec

Delkin 2GB
(Rear label: SDX02GPAQ1-EJAA000 1106)

unknown

3.450MB/sec

3.319MB/sec

Kingston Ultimate 133X 1GB(Rear label: D000 BK5DA208904 RP-SDK01GKG1)

unknown

3.294MB/sec

3.279MB/sec

Panasonic Pro High Speed 1GB(Rear label: D000 BK5DA148969 RP-SDK01G)

unknown

3.210MB/sec

3.267MB/sec

A-Data Turbo 150X 2GB(Rear label: S52GBA0601KKKT7TWN)

unknown

2.961MB/sec

3.194MB/sec

Shikatronics Turbo 2GB
(Rear label: SD2GBK01S0601)

unknown

2.943MB/sec

3.185MB/sec

SanDisk Ultra II Plus 2GB
(Rear label: ENG-577-2GB)

SanDisk

2.812MB/sec/sec

3.075MB/sec

Transcend 150X 4GB4(Rear label: 127441 0761 0549)

unknown

3.028MB/sec

3.067MB/sec

SanDisk Ultra II 2GB
(Rear label: BE0506XL)

SanDisk

2.891MB/sec

2.800MB/sec

SanDisk "standard" 1GB
(Rear label: BB0405PM)

SanDisk

2.029MB/sec

2.015MB/sec

Pretec 133X 1GB5(Rear label: SDS01GB00521)

unknown

--not tested--

--not tested--

(1) To help determine whether the card you purchase is substantially similar to the one tested, the card's description includes an identifier - series number, internal name or other unique value - where possible and applicable. Please see How Can I Be Sure the Card I Buy is the Same One Tested in this Report? for more information.(2) Many companies sell SD media; relatively few actually design and manufacture the key internal components, including the controller and flash memory. This column lists the source of the key component or components inside the card, to help you determine if cards with different labels on the front are in fact similar or identical under the hood.
(3) K/sec = Kilobytes per second (1 kilobyte = 1024 bytes); MB/sec = Megabytes per second (1 megabyte = 1024 kilobytes).
(4) This camera will not format SD cards larger than 2GB. It will, however, write to them successfully if they're first formatted elsewhere.
(5) This card behaved erratically in this camera and was ultimately excluded from testing.